Physical items, memento's, nick-knacks and other personal possessions reflect upon the owner's tastes, likes and personality. For example, a person having a tennis racket or an icon of a tennis racket in their office conveys to visitors an affection or appreciation for sports. A woman driving a European car, or keeping a small model of a European car in her office may send a message of a certain status or taste. FIG. 1, shows how people may associate various objects or icons to reflect a certain image to their surroundings. Personality profiles that reflect such traits are very useful for numerous purposes, e.g., in advertising and product marketing. However, it is difficult to create such personality profiles in the virtual world. Without manually compiling this type of information, there is no direct mechanism to convert these associations to a report or an electronic database. In this regard, the inventors have realized that smart labeling technology may be used for solving this problem in accordance with embodiments of the present invention.
Smart labeling is the latest Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, combining the advantages of barcode, Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) and traditional RFID solutions. RFID systems allow for non-contact reading in manufacturing and other types of environments where barcode labels may not perform properly or be practical. RFID has applications in a wide range of markets including automated vehicle identification (AVI) systems and livestock identification because of its capability to track moving objects. The technology has become a primary player in identification, automated data collection, and analysis systems worldwide.
For example, Philips Semiconductors' ICODE ICs represent the state-of-the-art in smart label technology, offering a low-cost, reprogrammable and disposable solution for source tagging, automatic data capture, theft protection and data storage on a product or its packaging. ICODE smart labels allow for almost any item to be tagged for efficient handling. ICODE's highly automated item scanning process does not require line-of-sight and can scan multiple labels at the same time.
In airline baggage tagging and parcel services, smart labels offer considerable advantages in sorting and item tracking. In supply chain management systems, smart labels overcome the limitations of barcode technology, providing improved product distribution; and in libraries and rental applications, they provide automated check-in, check-out and inventory control.
As shown in FIG. 2, a conventional RFID system 10 consists of a tag reader 11 which is connected to a personal computer 12 (PC) through a serial port 13. The PC 12 takes action as it reads the trigger of a tag 14. Information can be exchanged via a communication medium 15 (e.g., Internet or Intranet) with a remote server 16.
The tag reader 11 typically consists of three components:
An antenna or coil;
A transceiver (with decoder); and
A transponder (commonly called an RF tag) that is electronically programmed with unique information.
The antenna emits radio signals to activate the tag so that it can read and write data to it. The antenna is the conduit between the tag and the transceiver. It helps control the system's data acquisition and communication. The electromagnetic fields produced by the antenna can be constantly present or activated as needed when tags are detected by a sensor.
There is a need, however, for a method using state of the art technology to solve the shortcomings described above. The inventors have discovered significant advantages in using various labeling technologies in facilitating the creation of personality profiles as discussed below.